Secretary of State Rex Tillerson says he is delegating his responsibilities at the end of the day Tuesday to Deputy Secretary of State John Sullivan. Tillerson spoke to reporters hours after being fired by President Donald Trump in a tweet. (March 13)
AP

WASHINGTON — Top Senate Republicans said Tuesday they would move quickly to hold confirmation hearings on President Trump’s two abruptly announced nominees to lead the State Department and the Central Intelligence Agency, even as Democrats voiced misgivings about both candidates.

Pompeo’s nomination will go before the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, while Haspel will face the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence. The GOP chairmen of both panels said they would hold confirmation hearings soon.

Democrats have expressed concern about both nominees' stands on the use of torture techniques against suspected terrorists and detainees, and many Democrats are likely to oppose both candidates. However, Republicans hold a 51-vote majority in the Senate and could confirm both nominees without Democratic support.

Mike Pompeo, Director of the CIA, will become our new Secretary of State. He will do a fantastic job! Thank you to Rex Tillerson for his service! Gina Haspel will become the new Director of the CIA, and the first woman so chosen. Congratulations to all!

The confirmation hearings are likely to go beyond a narrow focus on the candidates' qualifications. They also will give Trump's critics a chance to question them — and do a little grandstanding — on Russian meddling in the 2016 election, negotiations with North Korea, the Iran nuclear deal, surveillance of Americans, global warming and other key issues. Senators will be looking for any differences of opinion between the president and the nominees.

Senate Democratic leader Charles Schumer of New York blasted Trump’s abrupt firing of Tillerson, saying it has created more “chaos” in an already unstable administration. It will add, Schumer said, to the Trump administration’s “inability to have a consistent policy,” which he said is creating “huge problems in the world and here in America.

Schumer said he has not advised his fellow Democrats to oppose Pompeo or Haspel at this point, but both nominees face “lots of outstanding questions.”

Sen. Bob Corker, the Tennessee Republican who chairs the Foreign Relations Committee, said he told Pompeo on Tuesday morning that he would “move through the confirmation process as quickly as we could.”

Corker's staff said they anticipated a confirmation hearing in April and noted that Pompeo was confirmed to the CIA post by a Senate vote of 66 to 32.

Asked if he anticipated problems with Pompeo’s nomination, Corker said he’s had few, if any, dealings with the former Kansas congressman.

“I’ve heard nothing but positive things about his background,” Corker said. “I’ve just not had any interaction with him.”

Corker said the timing of Trump's decision to oust Tillerson was not ideal, given that the the president is scheduled to meet in the coming months with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, a session that will require significant preparation.

"Would it be better to have a Secretary of State in place? Sure," Corker said. But, he added, there is enough expertise on North Korea inside the State Department to ensure preparations for that meeting would not be disrupted.

Many of the Democratic senators who voted against Pompeo to become CIA director said that he had offered conflicting statements about whether he would expand government surveillance of Americans and bring back torture techniques — such as waterboarding — that were banned by former president Barack Obama.

Trump’s new nominee to be Secretary of State, Mike Pompeo, has not expressed any moral opposition to torture. His nominee to be @CIA Director, Gina Haspel, has done much worse (incl directly supervising the torture of detainees & helping destroy video evidence of those abuses)

As CIA director, Pompeo also drew criticism for seeming to contradict a January 2017 report by the U.S. intelligence community about the impact of Russia's interference in the 2016 presidential election.

Pompeo said in October that the intelligence community determined that Russian meddling in the 2016 presidential election did not affect its outcome. However, that's not actually what the 2017 report said, and the CIA quickly issued a statement clarifying that the intelligence assessment had not changed and "the director did not intend to suggest that it had."

The 2017 report stated that the intelligence community did "not make an assessment of the impact that Russian activities had on the outcome of the 2016 election."

Sen. Ron Wyden, D-Ore., a member of the Senate Intelligence Committee, said Tuesday that he opposes Pompeo's nomination to be secretary of State.

"Before and after his confirmation as CIA director, Mike Pompeo has demonstrated a casual relationship to truth and principle," Wyden said. "He has downplayed Russia's attack on our democracy, at times contradicting the Intelligence Community he is supposed to lead. He has also made inconsistent and deeply concerning statements about torture and mass spying on Americans."

Sen. Dianne Feinstein, D-Calif., another member of the Senate Intelligence Committee, said she has questions about Pompeo's skill and competence in the diplomatic field.

"The CIA has little to do with diplomacy, and I believe any secretary of State requires patience, diligence and above all knowledge and skill," she said. "This isn’t a role you can learn while on the job."

Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., a former prisoner of war in Vietnam and chairman of the Armed Services Committee, said Pompeo has "repeatedly committed that he would comply with the law that applies the Army Field Manual’s interrogation requirements to all U.S. agencies, including the CIA." The field manual bans torture techniques.

“I have known Mike Pompeo for many years and believe he will continue to serve our nation honorably as secretary of State, if confirmed," McCain said Tuesday. "With the world order rapidly giving way to chaos, it is more important than ever for our nation to lead from a position of strength on the international stage."

Mike Pompeo is an excellent choice to lead the State Department and represent the United States around the world. He understands very clearly the international challenges and the opportunities before America in the 21st Century.

"His experience as CIA Director, an Army officer, and a congressman, and his proven leadership on national security matters give him unique qualifications to lead the State Department at this critical juncture," Rubio said.

Sen. Chris Murphy, D-Conn., who is also a member of the Foreign Relations Committee, said Pompeo has "a lot of work to do in order to get Democratic votes."

"The last thing we need is a ‘yes’ man at State who views America's power exclusively through the prism of military power and covert action," Murphy said.

Sen. Richard Burr, R-N.C., who chairs the intelligence committee, praised Trump's choice of Haspel to lead the CIA.

CIA Deputy Director Gina Haspel.(Photo: AP)

“I know Gina personally and she has the right skill set, experience, and judgment to lead one of our nation’s most critical agencies," Burr said. "I look forward to supporting her nomination, ensuring its consideration without delay.”

But her nomination may be more controversial because of her direct involvement during the George W. Bush administration in the CIA's past practices of "enhanced interrogation techniques," which critics define as torture. She also reportedly ran a secret prison in Thailand in 2002 where terrorism suspects were waterboarded and subjected to other so-called enhanced interrogations.

"I voted against Mr. Pompeo’s nomination to be CIA Director because he failed to express moral opposition to torture, but Ms. Haspel has done much worse," said Sen. Tammy Duckworth, D-Ill. "Not only did she directly supervise the torture of detainees, but she also participated in covering it up by helping to destroy the video evidence. Her reprehensible actions should disqualify her from having the privilege of serving the American people in government ever again."

McCain said Haspel's career with the CIA "has intersected with the program of so-called ‘enhanced interrogation techniques’ on a number of occasions."

"The torture of detainees in U.S. custody during the last decade was one of the darkest chapters in American history," McCain said. "Ms. Haspel needs to explain the nature and extent of her involvement in the CIA’s interrogation program during the confirmation process."

The torture of detainees in U.S. custody during the last decade was one of the darkest chapters in American history. The Senate must do its job in scrutinizing the record & involvement of Gina Haspel in this disgraceful program. https://t.co/p2eZfMDF5N

Sen. John Warner of Virginia, the top Democrat on the intelligence committee, predicted that Haspel would go through a "robust confirmation process" but he did not offer any hint that he would oppose her nomination.

"I feel like ... I’ve had a very good working relationship with her as the deputy director,” Warner said.

Wyden said her role in the CIA's torture program should be declassified so lawmakers and the American public can get to the truth.

“I believe it is possible to declassify information about her without compromising sources and methods,” Wyden said, adding that any effort to keep that information under wraps amounts to a "cover-up."

Feinstein said she's had concerns with Haspel in the past because of "her connection to the CIA torture program." Still, Feinstein said Haspel appears to have done a good job in her current post.

"To the best of my knowledge she has been a good deputy director and I look forward to the opportunity to speak with her again," Feinstein said.